Recyclables

LONDON — Ever since China announced last year that it no longer wanted to be the “world’s garbage dump,” recycling about half of the globe’s plastics and paper products, Western nations have been puzzling over what to do when the ban went into effect, which it did on Jan. 1.

The answer, to date, in Britain at least, is nothing. At least one waste disposal site in London is already seeing a buildup of plastic recyclables and has had to pay to have some of it removed.

Steve Frank, of Pioneer Recycling in Oregon, owns two plants that collect and sort 220,000 tons of recyclable materials each year. A majority of it was until recently exported to China.

“My inventory is out of control,” he said.

China’s ban, Mr. Frank said, has caused “a major upset of the flow of global recyclables.” Now, he said, he is hoping to export waste to countries like Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Malaysia — “anywhere we can” — but “they can’t make up the difference.”

Replies to This Discussion

I spoke withTim, the local the recycling manager. Tim said Napa Recycling (The town I live in) doen't need to worrry about the Chinese ban. He said they are renegotiating the contract.

Without going into too many gory details Tim said plastic bags clogg their sorting machines. Last year California passed plastic bag legislation to reduce plastic bag pollution...With few exceptions grocery stores don't provide plastic bags to customers for grocery items for free. Grocery plastic bags are sold for ten cents. Cloth bags are also provided for purchase.

Tim said thin film plastic such celephane and styrophoam isn't recyclable. Like plastic bags styrophoam should be banned. Frozen TV dinner and other frozen convience food could be packaged in paper containers.

NapaRecycling received a license from the State of California to compost residential food waste. Composting food waste reduced the burden to the water treatment plant plant and landfill. Paper plates, napkins, tissue, paper towels and other paper based food containers are compostable.

The recycle center provides customers with a 1 gallon metal can with a 2-3/4" screw on lid for grease and oil and a 1-2 gallon bin for kitchen compost material.

If requested curbside pickup of motor oil and electronic waste is provided for no additional charge.

Tim wasn't sure what the company they sold the plastic to did with it. He thought they made other plastic items for the home market and to sell back to us. We talkied about plastic wood, furniture, and unfortunately clothing.

I asked about burning garbage and recyclables saying I read that some Scandinavian countries burn garbage for electricity. Tim said California pollution laws are too strict. He said that even with scrubbers on the exhaust stacks it wouldn't pass emissions regulations.

He said they are looking at a couple of Plastic to Fuel and Plastic to Oil companies in the area.

He said glass is recycled locally.

I wonder how Napa Recycling compares with garbage service companies in other towns.

As a side note,

On the way into town there is a vinyard that runs along the highway. The signs say

The People’s Reporting Registry is now the Community Health Book. Visit it here

For the past decade I have received hundreds of thousands of emails from people around the United States and the globe reporting problems that they are experiencing in their communities. Many of these inquiries are about environmental concerns.

I believe that it is the voice of the people who live in these towns dotted across the country, who on a daily basis are experiencing the harmful effects of water, air and soil pollution. It is critical that we listen to their plight and identify what might be causing them harm and learn from what they are experiencing. After all, who better than they to know what is happening to them than they themselves? We don’t live in their shoes nor experience what effects a contamination might be doing to them, their families or their health.

It has been this past year that I noticed many of the emails coming to me were of concerns from neighborhoods that were reporting what they see as too much disease and cancers amongst them. Reports like 14 children on one street with cancer; Reports of 20 or more children in one neighborhood with brain tumors; Reports of people being stitched together through Facebook to only discover that tens upon tens of them from the same high school have cancer. This is when I decided it was just too many reports from the people and possibly wasn’t a coincidence that I created a map to help better understand what might really be going on out there.

I was shocked when the map was completed that so many people were reporting such issues across the United States and beyond. From the State of Kansas all the way to the East Coast, I can barely tell that I am looking at a map of the United States. This map is called the “People’s Reporting Registry” and it is designed for us to just look at what the people are saying and to learn from what they are experiencing and seeing so that we can begin to find some progressive solution to these problems and the environmental contamination that we all must face.

If we don’t see this how can we possibly begin to find solutions? If you are experiencing what appears to be a known or suspected contamination in your neighborhood and in your (the peoples) observation of what appears to be excess illness, you can report it here. Your voice is how we can see the problem and begin to seek out solutions that can assist and bring together companies in your community with YOU the community and begin the process of identifying what could be on overlooked cluster and to begin a cleanup process and address the health concerns of communities.

It is time that companies and people co-exist together without lost business and without lost lives. – Erin

Disclaimer

The information contained on this map has been provided by third parties and has not been independently verified by Brockovich Inc, its employees, officers or agents (“Brockovich Inc”). This map is provided solely for the purposes of allowing interested parties to make further enquiries or to contribute additional information. Brockovich Inc makes no representation, nor gives any warranty that this information is, or will remain, accurate, current and complete (including information referring to type and potential cause of illness). Nothing on this map should be construed as legal advice, and interested parties should not act or refrain from acting in reliance on the information contained on this map without first obtaining independent, professional legal advice. To the extent permitted by law Brockovich Inc excludes all liability in respect of any loss arising in any way (including by way of negligence) from reliance on the information contained on this map or otherwise in connection with it.This map and the information on which it is based is protected by copyright and Brockovich Inc reserves its rights in this regard. This map and the information on which it is based may not be reproduced in whole or in part for any purpose and may not be used for any commercial purposes without first obtaining the prior written permission of Brockovich Inc.

Converting Waste Plastic to Ultra-Clean, Ultra-Low Sulphur Fuel

Plastic2Oil® is a clean energy company that recycles waste plastic into liquid fuels. PTO's proprietary Plastic2Oil® technology can deliver economic and environmental benefits by replacing refined fuels and diverting waste plastic from landfills. More

Note: Plastic2Oil® has been issued an exemption from Air Permitting in the state where the first site will be located for the agreement with Rock-Tenn Company ("RockTenn").

Napa residents, schools, and businesses can recycle allrigid plastics, including bottles, jugs, buckets, tubs, bins and toys! There is no need to look at the number on the bottom – Click here for details on our single-stream recycling program. Styrofoam, plastic bags, and plastic film/wrap are not accepted. Businesses with a large amount of shrink wrap can call our office to set up special recycling services. Also, please realize that many plastic items (pens, straws, lip balm containers, etc.) are so small that they can’t be picked out by our workers or fall through our recycling equipment…but we will successfully recycle the majority of the plastics placed in the blue cart.

I've been putting small items in tied off plastic bags. The local recycle manager Tim said that was okay.

Earth Day in town there is a festival where drink containers for example are made of a corn based biodegradable material. It's not clear to me if it's compostable.

The garbage/recycle company provides 'Green' compostable bags for leaves.

Here in NYC, "Meat, bones, and dairy are all accepted. . . .The conditions at NYC’s industrial composting facilities allows for the breakdown of these materials."

The city's front-yard/sidewalk compost bins are extra-study and are on wheels, and small bins for use at home (small apartments, all too often) have tiny holes on top to allow just enough aeration to reduce odor. But with ongoing and not always perfect use, of course the meat/milk's anaerobic action links to stink attract vermin.

The US has approved controversial tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels.

The move is in line with President Donald Trump's "America First" trade policy, which aims to protect local manufacturers from foreign competition.

A spokesman said the administration would "always defend American workers, farmers, ranchers and businessmen".

But China and South Korea, whose manufacturers will be most heavily affected, criticised the move.

US officials said more trade enforcement actions would follow.

Mr Trump has talked about taking the action ever since coming to office. In his inauguration speech a year ago he promised to protect US borders from other countries "making our products, stealing our companies and destroying our jobs".

The actions are being seen as the president's most significant trade moves since his decision to pull the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal (TPP) and renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta).

Why have the tariffs been imposed?

The tougher policy was approved by President Trump after the US International Trade Commission (ITC) found local manufacturers were being hurt by cheaper imports.

Manufacturing companies - Whirlpool, a US-based maker of washing machines, and the solar firms Suniva and Solar World Americas - had complained to the ITC and it found in their favour.

Meanwhile, the tariff increase on imported solar cells and modules in the first year will be 30%, falling to 15% by the fourth year, although 2.5 gigawatts (GW) of imported cells - enough for about 11.5 million panels - will be allowed in tariff-free annually.

The ITC said that China had been selling "artificially low-priced" solar components in the US, assisted by state subsidies.

What does it mean for the solar industry?

Taylor Kate Brown, BBC News, Washington

The Trump administration has imposed these tariffs as part of a larger promise to protect American manufacturing - including the solar industry firms that brought the original complaint to the trade commission. But what the "solar industry" means in this context is complicated.

The tariffs were opposed by America's largest solar industry group - the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). SEIA said Suniva and Solarworld had used the complaint to cover for bad business practices - and pointed out the two companies are actually foreign-owned even though the produce panels in the US.

SEIA's position was also driven by the fact the group represents thousands of solar installers - an industry that's seen explosive growth, driven in part because of the dropping cost of panels. Firms that specialise in larger solar "farms" that sell their energy to US utilities are particularly worried about the decision, as they compete directly with coal, natural gas and wind producers.

Shares in Whirlpool rose 2.5% on the news, and it immediately announced it would employ 200 more people. Shares in US solar panel manufacturers also went up.

Environmentalists argue that making solar panels more expensive risks holding back the development of renewable energy in the country.

China and South Korea have reacted angrily to the news.

South Korea said it would complain to the World Trade Organization (WTO), calling the tariffs "excessive" and "regrettable". Its manufacturers, including Samsung and LG, compete in the washing machine market with US firms such as Whirlpool.

Samsung called the tariffs "a tax on every consumer who wants to buy a washing machine".

Meanwhile China, the world's biggest solar panel manufacturer, said the move would further damage the global trade environment.

China is the US's biggest trading partner and government spokesman Wang Hejun said that Beijing expressed "strong dissatisfaction" with the plans.

He warned that "together with other WTO members, China will resolutely defend its legitimate interests" adding that the plans "not only aroused the concern of many trading partners but was also strongly opposed by many local governments and downstream enterprises in the US".